


Always Welcome

by gotemsayingwow



Category: Fruits Basket, Fruits Basket (Anime 2001), Fruits Basket (Anime 2019), Fruits Basket - Takaya Natsuki (Manga)
Genre: Domestic Fluff, F/M, Fluff, tohru aka mom of the year
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-09-12
Updated: 2020-09-12
Packaged: 2021-03-06 21:33:43
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,176
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26415718
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/gotemsayingwow/pseuds/gotemsayingwow
Summary: An unexpected visit from Hajime is always, always welcome.
Relationships: Honda Tohru/Sohma Kyou
Comments: 3
Kudos: 81





	Always Welcome

Tohru was humming to herself, some song she had heard on the grocery store radio that afternoon, as she finished the dishes from dinner that evening. She relished the quiet moment in the kitchen to herself, especially after a busy day. Even when her daughter offered to dry the dishes, Tohru sent her away, instead opting to take the moment for some peace and quiet.  
  
It was dark out already and, though the house was warm, Tohru felt a chill run down her spine as she looked at the blustery night outside. The winters here were so much colder than they ever seemed to be at home; the wind was downright menacing. As she absentmindedly scrubbed the pan, she said a brief prayer that her husband would make it home safe. It wasn’t like they lived far from the dojo, but she was always nervous when he taught evening classes. Sometimes, she would even leave the house to go fetch him, but it was only to hear his laugh when he saw her standing outside. It wasn’t like she could truly protect him from danger or the cold, but she liked to think she could protect him from a lonely five minute walk.  
  
She heard the key turning in the lock in the front door and frowned when she looked at the time. It was still a bit early for Kyo to be home. She hoped he was feeling okay. She heard the sound of shoes being placed in the shoe cabinet and a coat being hung on the hooks by the front door, but she waited for him to round the corner into the kitchen before she spoke.  
  
“You’re home early,” Tohru commented. She didn’t turn around from the sink as she was elbow deep in soapy water. Instead, she waited for him to come to her as he often did. “Are you feeling okay?”  
  
“Actually,” the voice responded and Tohru gasped. She dropped the plate she was washing back into the soapy water and whirled around, ignoring the fact that her hands were dripping. “No, I’m not feeling too great.”  
  
Standing in the kitchen entryway was her oldest son. She certainly was not expecting him to be home tonight, especially when his university was over four hours away and it was the middle of the week. She rushed to him, grabbing his shirt with her soapy hands, and scanned his face, immediately concerned. He blushed under her scrutiny, but he looked completely fine. There were no signs of him being sick. She wiped her hand on her apron and pressed it to his forehead. No, he wasn’t sick. But something was wrong.  
  
In his brown eyes, she could tell he was sad and he was trying to pretend he wasn’t. Her heart melted at the expression, a perfect mirror of his father’s and, perhaps, her own. He was sad and embarrassed, but he needed something.  
  
“Hajime,” Tohru said, wrapping him up in an embrace. He was tall, much taller than she was, but he crouched down and hugged her back. “Welcome home.” She kissed the side of his head, making note of the fact that he was due for a haircut.  
  
When she released him, she turned to flick on the burner for a pot of tea. Hajime stood awkwardly in the entryway watching her, seemingly conflicted. “Aren’t you going to ask what I’m doing home?” He asked.  
  
“I will,” Tohru promised. “But first, just have a cup of tea, okay? Have you eaten? I made a hotpot for dinner and there’s plenty left over.”  
  
“Mom, you really don’t have to…” Hajime started.  
  
She smiled at him and ushered him to sit at the kitchen table. “I do have to,” she insisted.  
  
She was heating up some dinner for him when she heard her other two children clamber down the stairs. They must have heard their brother’s voice, because her teenage son and preteen daughter certainly wouldn’t have been so excited about something as mundane as their father coming home from work.  
  
“What the hell is nii-san doing here?” Seiji asked. Tohru whipped her head around to shoot her middle son a look and he quickly amended his phrase to exclude any profanity.  
  
“Yeah, don’t you have, like, classes to go to and stuff?” Emiko asked.  
  
Hajime paused and then said “Well, actually, I was just…”  
  
Tohru interrupted. “I completely forgot he was coming home today,” She lied smoothly. “There’s some paperwork your father and I forgot to do for tuition, so I told him to come home, have a nice home cooked meal, and stay the night while we sorted it out.”  
  
“Then why didn’t he actually join us for dinner?” Asked Seiji. She could tell he was suspicious.  
  
“There was really bad traffic,” Hajime lied and, when his siblings weren’t looking, Tohru winked at him.  
  
Seiji and Emiko shot each other a look, but shrugged. Emiko asked “Oh mom, are you making tea?”  
  
Tohru sighed. “Yes, but for your brother, not for you two.”  
  
Seiji was incredulous and Hajime had to hide his smirk. “Are you serious?!” He asked. “But he doesn’t even live here!”  
  
Tohru pursed her lips and grabbed four mugs out of the cupboard. She reserved two for her and Hajime on the counter and planted the other two mugs in Emiko and Seiji’s hands. As they held their cups, she poured their tea, careful not to fill it too much so they wouldn’t spill on the stairs. “Have your tea in your rooms,” she insisted. “I’m making a big breakfast for all of us tomorrow, but let me dote on Hajime for a little while. He’s too far away for me to do it every day.”  
  
Hajime’s siblings scowled, but obliged, exiting the kitchen with their tea and skulking up to their rooms. Tohru placed a steaming mug of green tea in front of her son and then served him his hotpot.  
  
“Thanks, mom,” Hajime said, bowing his head before digging into the dish. “It’s really nice to eat your cooking.”  
  
Tohru smiled warmly at her son and placed her hand on his arm. “It’s really nice to see you eat my cooking,” she said. She watched him eat, the sight completely filling her with joy. He caught her eye and stopped eating briefly, expecting her to say something, but she didn’t. “Just eat, please. It’s okay.”  
  
When he finished eating, he joined her at the sink and helped her finish the dishes. Then, they turned off the lights in the kitchen and Tohru ushered Hajime over to the couch in the living room. She sat facing him, her feet tucked underneath her, and said nothing. Instead, she just marveled at her handsome boy and took the moment to appreciate him being home.  
  
“I…uh…” Hajime spoke. She could practically see the gears in his head turning, trying to figure out a way to explain why he was home. She had already pretty much figured out what he was doing there—if there was an actual emergency he was certain to have called her first. “I just really needed to come home.”  
  
She nodded, understanding the sentiment completely. “You’re always welcome home,” she said, reaching across to him and squeezing his hand. “But what’s going on? Why are you home?”  
  
Hajime didn’t answer, and she watched, heartbroken as his eyes filled with tears. She shuffled down the couch to him and pulled his head down onto her shoulder. She stroked his auburn hair and her heart ached as she felt his hot tears stain her blouse.  
  
Every one of his cousins (and his siblings) often called Hajime a ‘mama’s boy.’ They had used the term to describe him ever since he was a baby. It was true, while Hajime certainly adored his father, Tohru found him at her feet most often. He was always the first of her children to offer to help her, even when he was still young. When he was troubled, he always came to her before going to anyone else. It made her heart so happy to know that he loved her and could confide in her. She never used the term ‘mama’s boy,’ instead regarding Hajime as a ‘family man.’ But she never disputed the term either. They had a special bond.  
  
So she was perplexed as to why he would be so emotional. He was already in the second term of university. They spoke on the phone several times per week and Hajime always sounded so positive. He seemed to be enjoying his classes, he loved the university housing, and he even commented that the food ‘wasn’t half bad!’ When he was home over the summer for a few weeks, he seemed happy and talked excitedly about his first term. She couldn’t pinpoint a specific reason he could be so distraught—at least nothing he had told her or hinted at.  
  
But she also knew that one of the traits Hajime had inherited from both herself and from Kyo was the need to appear ‘fine’ to the outside world. He wasn’t ever one to dwell on the challenges in life and, even when he was upset, he always tried to downplay it. When he was home, it was easy for her to see through that mask, but it’s a lot harder when you only speak on the phone or through text messages.  
  
She allowed him to cry for a few minutes before she pressed his shoulders so he was facing her. “What’s wrong, Hacchan?” She asked, using the nickname she’d always called him when he was little.  
  
Hajime sighed and wiped his eyes with the back of his hand. “It sounds pathetic, but I really, really wanted to be home.” He took a sip from his second cup of tea before explaining “Nothing even happened. I had a really good week, but then all of a sudden I just got so…lonely.”  
  
Tohru nodded. She was familiar with that sensation, the feeling of sudden, overwhelming loneliness. “What about your friends from the soccer team?” She asked. Hajime had joined club soccer in his first few weeks at university, picking up the beloved sport from back when he was in middle school.  
  
Hajime shrugged. “It was a different kind of lonely,” he explained. “I didn’t want to be around people, I wanted to be around…home. Around you guys.” Tohru smiled and squeezed his hand. “It’s so stupid, honestly. I’ve lived away from you all for so long, I don’t know why it hit me all of a sudden…”  
  
Tohru considered this. Sure, Hajime had lived back in the capital while he was in high school so that he could attend his parents’ alma mater. But that was different. He was surrounded by family then, living with one of his best friends and two of his older cousins. Even though his parents and siblings weren’t around, he wasn’t shorthanded when it came to people who loved him.  
  
“I was just sitting in the library trying to study, but all I could think about was you and dad,” he admitted. He seemed a bit embarrassed, but continued nevertheless. “I even thought about going to see Mutsuki and Kinu-nee instead, they’re so much closer, but I just wanted to be home I guess.”

“What time did you decide all of this?” Tohru asked.

“Well, my last class got out around three and then I stopped in the library to study so...I don’t know. Some time after that?” Hajime explained.

Tohru did the math in her head, horrified as she realized just how fast he must have been driving if he had made it home in such a timeframe. She chose not to say anything about it, though. Instead, she would offhandedly mention it to Kyo for him to deal with. She had no room to talk, anyway, she was about the slowest driver in the world. Anyone compared to her was a speed demon.

She didn’t ask him any more questions and he didn’t have anything more to share. Instead, they finished their tea in the quiet living room. Tohru squeezed his hand several times. Even if he was home in such a state, she was thrilled to see him. She really did miss him.

When they finished their tea, she rose and grabbed his cup. “Come on,” she said. “Let’s go make up your room for the night.”

Hajime looked surprised. “Oh, I wasn’t planning on staying the night.”

“You certainly weren’t planning on driving back so late, were you?” Tohru asked, shocked at the idea. He wouldn’t be back on campus until well after midnight. 

Hajime rubbed the back of his neck with his hand, looking more and more like his father with each gesture. “I mean...I have class in the morning,” he admitted sheepishly.

Tohru pressed her forehead against the cool kitchen cabinets as she rinsed out the mugs. Now she was left with the choice of having him drive back late at night or missing class in the morning. “Hajime…” she groaned.

“Sorry, I guess I wasn’t thinking,” He responded. “It’s fine, it’s not that long of a drive.”

Yes it is for people who drive the speed limit, she thought in her head, but she didn’t say anything out loud. Instead, she told him “It’s okay. You can miss class tomorrow. Just...just go get some sheets out of the linen closet.”

“I can miss class tomorrow?” Hajime asked, incredulous at her response. “Did you really just say that?” she could almost hear his grin.

Now she was annoyed, but again she didn’t admit that out loud. Instead, she turned and plastered a smile on her face. “It’s okay,” she lied. “It’s just one day, right?”

Hajime thanked her and scrambled up the stairs to retrieve sheets for his bedroom. Once he left the kitchen, Tohru rested the cups in the dish strainer and sighed. Even she couldn’t believe she had just said such a thing, but at least missing one day of class wasn’t actually dangerous. There was no way she would let him drive at this hour.

She trudged upstairs and into his room, where Hajime was already making the bed. She shuffled him out of the way and took over, allowing herself the opportunity to take care of him. “Would you like me to email your professors?” She asked. She imagined the answer would be a no, but she was curious nonetheless. “I can explain the circumstances for you missing class.”

“Mom, it’s fine,” Hajime told her. “They don’t even take attendance in the classes.”

“But you’ll miss the notes,” she exclaimed. “If you tell them you won’t be there they’ll send you the work.”

“I’ll just ask a friend from class, it’s fine,” He insisted. She groaned again, saying his name in the same tone of voice as she had earlier. “Okay, yes, I will email them and explain. Sorry.”

“Thank you,” Tohru said. She was curious if he actually would email them, but took his words at face value. She trusted that he was responsible enough not to miss the material and she also knew that nagging him wouldn’t help the situation either. 

She finished making his bed, tucking all of the blankets back in place, and sat at his desk chair, facing him. Hajime sat on the corner of his bed and hung his head.

“Are you going to lecture me about missing class?” Hajime asked.

“I wasn’t going to lecture you at all, but...can I give you a speech full of suggestions and encouragement?” 

“Do I have a choice?” 

“You can say no, but then I will have to tell your father and his speech would be a lecture,” Tohru insisted with a smile. He nodded his head to indicate that she could move forward. “Hajime, you are always welcome to come home. You never need a reason, you never need an excuse. You can show up any time you feel like it. 

“And while yes, you’ve lived away from us for a long time now, you still lived with family. You were still near people who loved you and cared for you. So while it’s still challenging to be apart, the likelihood of you feeling lonely is low. Now that you’re in university, though, you don’t have Mutsuki-kun or Kinu-chan or any of them to keep you company. And I think because you’re so used to having family around, when that was taken away it started to feel strange.

“Sometimes the loneliness and silence can be so overwhelming. The absence of noise is just as loud as the noise itself, especially when you’re used to such a rowdy family. But being lonely doesn’t have to be a bad thing. In fact, it’s actually something that will benefit you for the rest of your life. You’re not always going to be surrounded by people you love. Sometimes, you may even be surrounded by people you hate. But you have to learn to overcome that and to be enough for yourself.

“Your father and I weren’t as lucky as you are to be surrounded by family, but in a different sense we were luckier. When you’re alone, you have no choice but to be there for yourself and take care of yourself. You can learn some very valuable lessons from letting yourself be lonely and sad. That’s how you learn to cope.

“So, in conclusion,” Tohru said, leaving the desk chair and sitting next to Hajime on the bed. “The next time you’re feeling lonely or upset, just wait. Go to sleep for the night. Listen to music. Call us or call one of your cousins. Just wait for a little while so that you can experience those feelings. That way, when it happens in the future, you can deal with it. And, if after a night of sleep you still feel lonely and miserable, then you can come home. Or we’ll come to you. But please, just try to wait for a little while. It will be worth it in the long run, I promise.”

Hajime was about to speak, but their ears perked up at the sound of Kyo coming home from work. Tohru shook her head and laughed as she heard Emiko and Seiji race down the stairs to tell their father of their visitor as if he hadn’t seen the car parked outside. 

“Looks like I finished my speech full of suggestions and encouragement just in time!” Tohru exclaimed, rising to her feet. “Let’s go greet your dad.”

Hajime paused and said “Uh, mom...before we say hi to Dad, I just wanted to um...say thanks...for the speech full of suggestions and encouragement.” His hand returned to the back of his neck and he shuffled towards her.

Tohru smiled and pulled her son in for another hug. “I love you, Hacchan,” she whispered in his ear. “And I’m so proud of you. Don’t feel embarrassed for wanting to come home. You are always, always welcome.”

**Author's Note:**

> Don't mind me just cross posting all of my work onto AO3 to maybe cure my writer's block. I'm currently trying to end a new Kyoru fic but uh...yeah it's the struggle. Also, give some love to your teacher friends we is not ok out here!! Fan fiction is my saving grace rn. I am gotemsayingwow on FFN and gotemsayingw0w on Tumblr. Thank you !!!


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